Ammar Kalia, writing for The Guardian:
In the middle of a cavernous factory floor in Pudsey, Leeds, sits a gleaming steel cylinder. One day, its maker believes, most of us will end up in something similar.
The machine is a Resomator – a pressurised canister in which corpses are submerged in a mixture of 150C water and potassium hydroxide solution for three to four hours until the flesh is dissolved, leaving behind only soft, greyish bones. After drying in an adjacent oven, these are ground down into paper-white powder, while the fluid is sent to a water treatment plant for disposal. The entire process is operated by a touchscreen and a single “start” button, away from the view of mourners. Ashes to ashes no more.
This was the first time I’ve heard of alkaline hydrolysis (also known as “resomation”) before. After reading this absolutely fascinating piece, I started thinking about what I want my survivors do with my corpse after I die. Going into the Resomator seems like such a great option, especially for the environment. If you’ve considered cremation or burial before, give this article a thorough read—you might just change your mind afterward.